


Masked

by midsunsets



Category: Ao no Exorcist | Blue Exorcist
Genre: Action/Adventure, Gen, Not Canon Compliant, Rescue Missions oh boy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-17
Updated: 2016-10-17
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:15:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25463068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/midsunsets/pseuds/midsunsets
Summary: Rin Okumura is trapped in Gehenna after being pushed through the portal by a demon when he was trying to close it. Encountering some unknown creatures, he escapes to Assiah with the help of a boy, who claims to be trapped like him.But all is not over. A new evil is stirring and it is up to Rin and the others to stop it.But there is much more masked under the rising evil.....A secret that can destroy the very foundations of their world.
Relationships: Okumura RIn & Original Male Character(s)





	1. Prologue

**_Six months earlier_ **

"Middle First Class exorcist Saito Isoshi at your service."

A man was staring at the wide display of screens in front of him. His features glowed white from the light coming from the screens and his fingers were steepled together in concentration.

This was Morimoto Shotaro, Upper First Class exorcist. He was one of the best exorcists from his. Rumors say that he had killed many a demon and did not receive a single scratch.

He was too powerful and that made Saito nervous.

"Saito Isoshi, am I correct?" Morimoto asked, still staring at the screens.

"Yes, sir."

Morimoto beckoned him with a wave of his hand. Saito came over.

"Do you see that?" he asked, pointing to one of the screens.

At first, Saito did not understand what he was seeing. Then it strikes him. He refuses to beleive what he was seeing.

"No way," he breathed. "I've never seen that summoning circle before in my life. It is very unusual." He traced his fingers over the design of the circle in awe. "It must be the work of a demon," he concluded.

Morimoto nodded. "Thank you Saito. Now you may leave."

* * *

The Dark Days.

Everyone in Gehenna has heard of this. It was the most important events in the history of Gehenna and also the event that almost lead to the destruction of Gehenna.

It all started when a young demon decided to oppose Satan's tyrannical rule. His name was Belthar.

Belthar didn't like seeing his province suffering. Gehenna was divided into 27 provinces and the province that suffered the most was the 22nd province. Satan was then the young ruler of Gehenna.

Belthar did not like Satan's policies. But he was powerless. And so he suffered along with his province under Satan's rule.

* * *

Morimoto reached the building where the summoning circle was along with his partner, Noya Ryoichi and five other exorcists he specially picked.

"Isabelle, you're on guard duty," he said, singling out a young girl in her twenties. "Stay outside the building. If you hear anything or see anything that is out of the ordinary, run as fast as you can to the HQ." She nodded and ran away to the entrance.

"Keep your weapons ready," he warned the others. "And stay alert at all times." The group silently nodded their heads.

Morimoto approached the circle cautiously, gun in hand. His eyes sweeped the area for any signs of approaching danger. Nothing. He walked to the circle and examined it.

As Saito had said, the circle was unfamiliar. It was of a simple design; a circle with a star in it and in the very centre, a crescent moon. Complex spells were written in the summoning circle and his head was spinning from reading them. He was a Dragoon, not an Aria for God's sake!

_What in the world are we dealing with?_ he wondered, rubbing his temples. _Think._

Suddenly, the circle started glowing with blue light. Morimoto stepped back in surprise and kept his finger on the trigger, ready to shoot if something went wrong.

The circle kept glowing and in the middle of it, a man emerged. His shoulder length raven hair hid his face from view. He lifted his head slowly. His eyes, Morimoto noticed, were empty, dark pits. There was no expression on the man's face.

' _Like someone had gone and sucked the life out of them'_ Morimoto thought. He gave a signal to Noya, who understood what he meant.

"Aim your weapons!" Noya commanded. At once four weapons were aimed at the figure who kept staring at them with those lifeless eyes.

"Aren't you humans just interesting creatures?" he drawled, his mouth forming a sneer. "Maybe you can all be my pawns for my great plan!"

"Keep quiet, demon!" Morimoto snapped. "We can kill you right now. As you can see, we are the ones with the weapons."

The demon simply laughed. "You have quite a temper, young man!" he cackled. The sneer disappeared after that. "But not for long." He vanished.

They were left gaping at his abrupt departure. "Is it over?" One of the exorcists asked nervously.

"I guess," replied another.

Morimoto's senses were on full alert. There was something wrong here. Call it a gut instinct; he knew something was going to happen and it was going to be _bad_.

That thought was just finished when the demon appeared again. There was nothing with him, no weapons, no powers, _nothing._

That was when he was proved wrong.

He heard the panicked screams from his teammates and he swivelled around. He barely had time to say, _Holy crap_ when the inky blackness that had engulfed his teammates swallowed him also.

He staggered back, arms flailing wildly in the darkness around him. He heard the muffled shouts coming from the others but it all faded away in a cloud of panic and pain. The _pain._ It hurt like hell. Like someone was pouring acid on him.

For the first time in his life, Morimoto Shotaro felt fear. It was vicious, it held him in a vicelike grip in its jaws, overflooded him with so many thoughts, he couldn't think clearly anymore.

And then his mind turned blank as if all those thoughts were vacuumed from his brain. Only silence remained.

"That was a spectacular show!," cackled a voice. "From now on, you will refer to me as 'Sir' and you will serve me and only _me._ If you try to escape or run away, then...." He mimed someone getting their neck cut. "You will have to pay the consequences. Do you understand?"

" _Yes, sir!"_

"Good. Now let's go. We have a lot of work to do." He snapped his fingers and they disappeared.

From a distance, Isabelle saw everything that happened. The way the demon simply appeared. How their screams echoed through the air as they tried to escape the black cloud. How easily they turned servile to a demon, a monster of unknown intentions.

She was scared of what was going to happen. It was her fault that she didn't try to save them. Because of her, they were gone.

_"Run away,"_ Morimoto had said.

So she ran.


	2. Freedom

_**Present day** _

Rin Okumura never felt so hopeless before in his life.

As days passed by slowly in Gehenna, he was looking forward to the routine he was accustomed to. Wake up, have the food kept for him, sit for long hours, have food again, sit, then sleep.

The only thing that didn't change? The three grey walls surrounding him and the barred wall on one side.

_If I had been more careful,_ he thought. _I would have still been back_ _with my friends._

It was a small slip, a small mistake. Harmless, right? But that mistake cost him and - _almost_ \- Yukio dearly. It had cost him his freedom and Yukio his life. But somehow Yukio survived while Rin fell into the portal they were supposed to close.

But when he tried to go back, he was paralysed. He couldn't move an inch. Gehenna's atmosphere was choking him slowly. Instead of blood, he felt like fire was flowing through his veins and arteries. He felt his demonic powers becoming stronger.

It felt like he was being held down yet free all at once.

He sat on the cold, hard floor, staring at the chains that bound his legs. The chains restricted his powers.

_At least they had the courtesy to leave my hands free_ he thought.

Once he had fallen in and Satan back in Gehenna, the first thing Satan did was to lock Rin up. No one needed to know who he was. What would the other demons say when they saw him?

But those days were a paradise compared to _this._ He was allowed an hour free to do anything he wanted to. That fragile hour when he felt free.

Until a boy came and changed everything.

* * *

Belthar wasn't the kind of demon to give up easily.

He knew he was no match for Satan, with his blue flames and all, but surely there was a way to rebel against him? And with that thought, Belthar decided to get stronger. To become stronger, he had to leave his home and his family, which was his only son. Belthar had made a promise to his son: I swear I'll return home only after I get the power I need.

He travelled far and wide in Gehenna to find something, anything, that would help him become stronger to rebel against Satan. He travelled for months and months with no success. But he carried on. The promise that he had made kept him going forward.

_His own kind of freedom,_ he thought.

One day, after travelling, he reached a dirty and crowded city in the 16th province. He stopped to rest at a little pub and what he heard there piqued him.

There were rumours of a old traveller who claimed that he knew how to make demons become stronger within days. But no one knew the secret. Belthar decided to find out.

* * *

It was surprising that there was a boy in the building. He turned out to be a half demon, as his father was one. Yet he didn't have any powers.

He gave Rin a dangerous thing. Hope.

It was the hope that one day he would escape. Leave this miserable place behind.

That lead to his downfall. He and that boy had sneaked into Satan's room to find something, _anything,_ that would open a portal. They had found a box, with intricate carvings all over it, which they thought would open a portal.

Instead, a man with a sneer on his face and eyes like gaping holes had emerged from it and escaped.

_My biggest mistake,_ Rin thought bitterly.

He heard footsteps coming from outside the room. "Let's go," he had whispered. But the boy didn't move. On his face was an expression of shock. "Let's go," Rin said urgently, keeping the box back from where they had found it.

That was when Satan came into the room and caught them red handed.

Rin was shifted to another cell, where surveillance cameras were mounted on walls to monitor him. He was chained to keep him from escaping and to control him. He was tortured for trying to escape. Satan had taken away the one hour of freedom he had but still he clung on to hope, clung on to the boy's last words he had whispered to him when they were taken away.

_I will find a way._

He waited for days and days until those days stretched out to become weeks, which, in turn, became months. The future was starting to look bleak. There was no chance of escaping. The boy wasn't going to come.

There was no hope left for him.

* * *

Belthar was strongly intent on finding that mysterious man. He needed the power and he would go to any lengths to obtain it.

Or, that's what he thought.

"Are you that desperate for power?" someone chirped behind him. Belthar turned around to see an old demon standing behind him, his hands curled on a wooden staff.

"Yeah," Belthar replied. "Are you the one who can make demons stronger?"

"Yes!" said the old demon. "I can make anyone stronger!"

"Can you tell me how?" Belthar was excited. Finally his long days of searching were over!

The demon smiled. "Tell me why do you want it and I will tell you how."

"Why should I tell you?" Belthar asked, suspicious.

"Power is everything, my boy," he replied. "And information is power. I can't tell this little secret to every demon."

Belthar hesitated. He wasn't sure if he could trust this demon. What if he was one of Satan's spies?

_But he promised to help me,_ he thought.

After a long battle with himself, he relented. "I need to become stronger to rebel against Satan. He's a tyrant. He does not deserve to rule Gehenna and because of him, all the provinces are suffering. Especially the 22nd province."

"Hmmm," the demon mused. "A worthy cause. Fine, I'll tell you my secret.

"A demon told me once about a box which was located in the 27th province. Do you know about the 27th province?"

"Not really." Belthar had heard stories about it. None of them were good.

"The 27th province is a wild jungle filled with rogue demons, vampires and all sorts of creatures. In the east side of the jungle is a cave which is near the End of the World. Are you with me?"

"The End of the World...?"

"Is a bottomless cliff. Inside the cave is the box. The box, once opened, can grant wishes for anyone."

"Really?" Belthar was surprised. He had never heard of a box like this.

"Yes. But you will have to cross the jungle and its horrors first. Can you do it?"

Belthar wasn't sure about that. The trip was long. He may not come back alive from this. He may not see his son again.

He wasn't sure what to do.

"Time is ticking, my boy," said the old demon impatiently. "If you refuse then..."

"Then what?"

"I'll have to take appropriate measures."

At that Belthar gulped. _What should I say?_  
  


* * *

"Rin," hissed a voice from nowhere. "Rin!"

He jolted awake from his sleep and searched for the person who called him. Nobody was at the bars. He got up slowly and dragged himself towards the bars. There was no one in the dimly lit corridor.

"Rin!" called the same voice again. "Up here!"

He looked up and couldn't believe what he was seeing.

_It must be a joke._

He rubbed his eyes. It must be an illusion. But no.

Up there, in the AC vents was the boy who had promised to rescue him all those months ago.


	3. Electric wires

Rin was in shock. He didn't expect to see him here. And in the A.C. vent, of all the places.

"What are you doing up there?" Rin rasped, clutching the bars for support.

The boy didn't reply. Suddenly all the lights in the corridor went out and Rin was left blind in the darkness. He heard the sound of something falling and making contact with the floor, emitting a metallic twang, which he took as the vent's cover falling, followed by the whomp of someone falling. Seconds later after that happened, he heard the click of a lock being opened and a torchlight was aimed at his face.

Rin put his hands up to protect himself from the harsh glare. "Stop that," he said feebly, staggering back.

The boy walked in, set the torchlight down and sat down to work on his cuffs. "I promised you that I will rescue you, remember? You remember me?" Rin nodded. He couldn't forget the boy who destroyed his hopes so easily.

The boy unlocked the cuffs. "We have only little time. Before that, we have to escape. Can you walk?"

Rin got up and fell down immediately.

"Whoa," said the boy, catching him. "You can't stand at all."

"I'm fine," Rin snapped. He wasn't sure where that anger came from. "My legs slept off." He brushed the boy's hand off and felt the overwhelming sensation of his power finally freed from the cuffs that restrained him, flowing through his veins like liquid fire. "I can walk. Where are we going?"

He grinned. "Home."

* * *

"Make your decision. Time is ticking," said the old demon. "I don't have time to waste."

Belthar was conflicted. If he agreed to this, he may have a chance against Satan. But if he refused.....

He tightened his fists. "I accept."

"Very well," the old demon murmured, smiling. "Let's go, shall we? Time is ticki-"

"Before that," Belthar interrupted, "I want to know your name."

There was a pause.

"It's Lucifer. Now shall we go?"

Belthar nodded in agreement. But his gut instincts told him that Lucifer was hiding something.

* * *

Rin and the boy were crawling in the vents, painfully crouched on all fours. Their progress was slow but steady. The lights had come back a long time ago, so they were careful not to attract any unnecessary attention for themselves.

The boy stopped in front of him. Rin bumped into him and he hissed in pain.

"Sorry," Rin whispered.

"It's fine. Listen, this part of the vents is pretty tricky to move in. It's creaky, so be extra careful here, alright?"

"Yes," he grumbled.

They started crawling again. But they heard a loud creak and the vent gave way to the cold, hard floor. Rin groaned from the sudden pain that erupted from his body.

"Where are we?" the boy asked, disoriented.

"I don't know," Rin mumbled, getting up. His jaw dropped.

They had fallen into a room full of demons, who stared at them. Finally, one of them snapped back to reality.

"It's the prisoners! Capture them!" They ran towards the boys.

"Shit, I'm sorry!" the boy said while dodging a demon's attacks.

"You have a weapon?"

"Oh yes. Give me a moment." He opened his backpack and yanked the zipper open and pulled out a gun, the one used by exorcists. He flinched a bit and tossed the backpack to Rin. Inside was a long, red object which he identified as his sword.

"You can thank me later," the boy said. "Now let's get our sorry asses out of here."

Rin took his sword out from the backpack. He untied the rough red fabric to reveal his sheathed sword, Kurikara. The fire inside him was a caged lion, burning for escape. He unsheathed his sword and he burst into flames immediately.

He ploughed into the demons.

* * *

Lucifer and Belthar reached the jungle after months of travelling.

Belthar shivered. The jungle wasn't exactly a welcoming place. The trees had leaves of the deepest black, the trunks had deep grooves in them, like someone had attacked them with claws. Shadows and whispers fluttered in the jungle. He could hear the distant roars from the creatures inside.

Lucifer didn't seem to be affected by this. "Don't tell me you're going to quit here, boy."

Belthar wouldn't quit. He needed to get stronger, no matter what. Also, he was stung by the way Lucifer called him 'Boy'.

"I'm not," he assured.

"Then what are we waiting for?"

Belthar took one last look at the landscape behind them. The sun was due west and the sky was red, a deep red that made the sky look like a pool of blood. The wastelands lay beyond, silent, unmoving, a sharp contrast to the jungle ahead them. It was like the calm before a storm. Belthar took a deep breath. This may be the last time he would be seeing this.

"Let's go," he said, his voice filled with steely determination.

* * *

"Hurry up! We're almost there!" the boy yelled.

Rin tried hard to keep up with him. He was exhausted from fighting those demons. On top of that, the weird feeling of his powers spiralling out of control and at the same time being suppressed was draining his energy. He stumbled.

He expected his face to meet the cold floor but he found himself a few centimetres away from him. The boy had caught hold of him in the last minute, breaking his fall.

"Thank you," Rin muttered.

"I don't want you dying on me, okay? I will do everything to get you out of this place alive." He supported Rin against him and ran as fast as they could. Demons came from all sides, but most of them were wary of the boy's gun. Whoever was bold enough to approach them were greeted with holy bullets.

Supporting Rin was a tough job. But fighting demons at the same time? He could not keep this up for long. "Almost there!" he panted, the glass entrance doors visible at a distance. He hoped he had the right keys or else......

"We will be trapped here," he muttered under his breath.

He was going to reach the doors when a troupe of demons appeared, all of them armed. They formed a barricade at the entrance, effectively trapping him from his only chance of escape.

_No, no, no!_ he thought desperately. _This can't be happening again!_

He skidded to a stop. He had only three bullets left, inadequate to take all of them down. There was no other weapon left.

His mind was a blank. He could not think of anything else, any other plan to get them out. The demons were now closing in on all four sides, trapping him and Rin like a fly caught in a spider's net.

_Find a way, do something!_ His mind still remained blank. There was no escape. With a half dead boy and three bullets left, he was useless.

He sighed. "I guess it's over. We're done. I'm sorry -"

"Don't complete the sentence," Rin cut him off. He slowly got up with the support of his sword..

"What are you going to do?" he asked. "You can barely stand, how are you going to fight all of them?"

Rin did not reply. He felt the power thrumming in his veins, stronger than before. This time, he did not hesitate. He did not stop and think. He answered the call of his power and let it free. He unsheathed Kurikara for the second time.

And then, Rin's world went blue.

* * *

After several days of trekking in the forests, rationing food, endless banters with Lucifer and killing creatures Belthar had no clue about, they finally reached their intended destination: the cave that held the elusive box.

"Finally!" Belthar crowed. "Finally we reached the cave!"

"Shouting here won't help you, boy!"

They went inside the cave. Belthar examined the walls. Mysterious carvings were imprinted on the wall, which he didn't understand. But he didn't care. The box was important to him and he had to find it.

Surprisingly, they didn't meet any more obstacles. They were led directly to the box, which was in the middle of a room.

He stared at the box in awe. It was an obsidian box, with intricate illustrations on the sides. On the side facing him, he could make out a man being chained to a rock. His stomach was open and his guts were being ripped apart by vultures. He was transfixed by the carvings until the spell was broken. The box was taken away by someone.

"The bo-" The words died on his lips. Lucifer had the box in his hands, but something was wrong. Lucifer wasn't Lucifer anymore. His face was changing continuously, morphing into different features until he settled onto one. His body wasn't the body of an old man's anymore.

"Thank you for your help, Belthar," he sneered.

Belthar backed away from him. He couldn't believe his eyes. _No! It can't be true!_

Standing in front of him wasn't Lucifer, the old man who helped him for so many months, but the ruler of Gehenna, Satan, himself.


	4. Secrets left hidden

The blue flames hurt Takara's eyes and he staggered back. Rin was ablaze in front of him, his sword primed and ready.

He charged towards the demons.

The flames consumed them, sparing none in its path. Shrieks of pain filled the air along with the smell of burning flesh. Blood stained the floor, dark as midnight.

Takara took a step back, his eyes filled with horror. He had heard rumours of Satan's powers, but this was beyond what he had expected. This was madness, and it had to be stopped.

There were no demons left to fight against but Rin showed no signs of slowing down. The flames were even stronger than it was.

"Rin?" he asked. The other boy did not reply, just turned towards him. His eyes were tinged red. He showed no signs of stopping.

Takara knew what to do with the bullets left.

He aimed the gun at Rin.

"I'm so sorry."

A gunshot echoed in the air and Rin fell down, his vision turning dark.

* * *

"No," said Belthar, confused and anxious. "This can't be happening. This is not true!"

He pinched his hand, hard. A sharp, throbbing pain shot up his arm.

"What's the matter?" Satan sneered. "You can't believe I was using you all this time?"

Belthar said nothing.

"Do you even know what is this box? You never asked me that," Satan said, fondling the box.

"Give it back," Belthar demanded.

"And why should I listen to a mongrel like you?" He laughed. "Pandora's box cannot be given to everyone."

"What do you mean? You said the box contains power."

He stopped laughing. "Pandora's box," said Satan, "isn't an ordinary box. It contains power, yes, but it will only choose the strong. If you are weak, the power will consume you and tear you apart until there is nothing left of you."

 _At least Satan didn't lie about the box_ , Belthar thought. _I can still get it._

"Consider this day your lucky day because I'm in a good mood and willing to spare you, mongrel. I have wasted enough time already. I don't want to play games any more."

While Satan had been talking, Belthar sneakily pulled out a knife which he had concealed. He decided to take him by surprise. Anger tainted his vision a shade of red. He wanted _blood_. He wanted to destroy the demon in front of him for making so many lives miserable, to make him feel their fury, to make him experience the anguish to survive everyday in a world that screamed 'Eat or be eaten'.

Satan dodged him, but barely.

A gash appeared on Satan's abdomen, blood leaking from it. Belthar felt a deep sense of satisfaction as Satan inspected his wound.

"Tsk. You could have done better than that, mongrel."

First boy and now mongrel? Satan definitely knew how to insult him.

Belthar struck again and his frustration kept increasing as he tried to hit the demon, but he kept dodging it and smiling. He didn't even attempt to fight back.

He's powerful, after all, he thought. He is not afraid of me at all.

A memory resurfaced from the depths of his mind. Months ago, when they were travelling, a thief had tried to steal from them. Belthar caught him stealing and chased after him, till he reached a dead end. But the thief had a weapon and put up a good fight. Belthar found himself losing.

It was the time when he had just joined Satan on this trip.

Satan, who was an old man then, had arrived. As the demon tried to run away, he found himself confronting Satan. He tried to stab him but Satan had merely thrust one of his legs out, tripping him. As he fell, he impaled himself on his own weapon.

Maybe I could use this to my advantage, Belthar thought. I just need to change it a bit.

He thrust and parried, waiting for the right moment. When Satan showed an slight opening in his defenses, he executed his plan.

Satan tripped on his leg and fell down and as he did, Belthar stabbed him. Satan spat out blood and the box fell from his hands. Both of them lunged for it, but Belthar got to it first. He moved as far as he could from Satan.

"Nice move, mongrel," Satan sneered, getting up, his chest covered in blood. 

"But the power can never be yours."

* * *

Takara ran as fast as he could. Well, as fast as he could run with an unconscious boy on his back.

He weaved through the maze of streets, dodging scores of demons. He couldn't hear anyone in pursuit, but he ran on and on. As the skyscrapers around him gave way to low-rises, he sped up. He did not want to be spotted or chased after.

After all, he had a secret to keep.

He had to get to his destination, and fast. Rin was slowly losing blood. He staunched the flow as much as he could, but a blessed weapon like that could cause a lot of trouble.

The area looked like a slum. The buildings were crumbling and old, with paint peeling off and claw marks and graffiti on the walls. The roads were riddled with potholes.This was where most of the illegal activities took place. The Black Market. It was aperfect place for hiding anything. 

He turned around corners and made his way through potholes in the street, trying to stay away from prying eyes as much as possible.

This secret could rip lives apart.

At last, he halted in front of an old warehouse. Making sure he wasn't followed, he ran inside the building and shut the door behind him.

Rin groaned. Takara set him down carefully on the floor. He groaned again.

Now, all he had to do was find what he was looking for. 

Weak sunlight filtered through the cracks in the walls and from the grimy windows. Surrounded by boxes, there was a crack in the floor, pulsing like a crouching monster, waiting for its prey. It's very existence seemed to suck the life out of the room, like a black hole pulling everything inside. It hummed with energy.

Takara turned his back towards it, his lips pressed in a thin line. He went back to Rin.

Rin was awake by the time he reached. His skin was ashen and blood had stained his bandages. Takara knew they had to get out from there fast. He didn't know how much longer he could wait.

"Where are we?" Rin asked weakly. "Where's my sword?"

"We are in an old warehouse," Takara said. "In this building is our trip back home." He smiled wanly. "Are you okay? I'm sorry for shooting you."

"At least it brought my powers under control," Rin said. He stood up (or attempted to) because the moment he stood, his legs buckled and Takara caught him.

"Thanks," Rin mumbled.

Takara exhaled in response.

"Let's go," he said, supporting Rin as they made their way to the crack.

"What is this?" Rin asked in trepidation, looking at the pulsing crack in the floor. He slowly detached himself and limped closer to inspect it.

"Be careful," Takara warned, putting a hand on his shoulder to prevent him from getting too close. "It is dangerous."

"What is this?" he asked again.

"My secret." Rin looked at him. "A rip in the fabric of the universe. A path between Gehenna and Assiah."

"But-"

"No one knows of its existence except for me. It's dangerous for anyone to know of this. Promise me you wouldn't tell anyone. Swear it on your life."

"Don't worry, your secret is safe with me, I promise," said Rin assuringly. 

Takara smiled and took a deep breath. "I call upon you, Gatekeeper," he said, his voice echoing in the silence.

From the depths, a figure materialised. Her hands were nothing but shrivelled claws, her nails dirty and black. A black robe clung to her weathered form, covering her face in shadows. Her right hand was wound around a staff, its bulbous tip glowing a bright green.

"If it isn't my favourite boy," she rasped. "What can I do for you?"

"I need seats for two. The destination is Assiah," Takara replied plainly.

"You know the rules," the creature rasped. "What's your end of the deal?"

He set his backpack down and pulled out a box, its sides carved with elaborate designs. 

_That box looks familiar,_ Rin thought.

"Interesting," the creature murmured. "You've got yourself quite a deal." Her free arm reached for the box, which Takara gave.

"Fine, then!" she cackled, cradling the box in her hands. "A trip for two, coming up. Deal is closed." She sunk back into the shadows.

"Now is not the time, Rin," Takara shushed him when he opened his mouth. "I'll answer your questions later."

"Well, I just wanted to say thanks. And...." Rin leaned against Takara, his breath coming out in short gasps.

"Rin! Stay with me!" Takara said frantically. He hoisted him as Rin faded in and out of consciousness.

From the crack, a portal materialised. The strong winds pulled at them.

And then, Takara and Rin were sucked into the portal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, hello.
> 
> If you made it this far, thank you for checking this out! This was originally posted on Wattpad but I'm reposting it here after the security breach that happened. I won't be updating this anymore since I fell out of the fandom and series pretty long back and the only reason I'm reposting it here is out of sentiment.
> 
> Once again, thanks for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> So, hello.
> 
> If you made it this far, thank you for checking this out! This was originally posted on Wattpad but I'm reposting it here after the security breach that happened. I won't be updating this anymore since I fell out of the fandom and series pretty long back and the only reason I'm reposting it here is out of sentiment.
> 
> Once again, thanks for reading!


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